DARPA names new director

Dugan is 19th director for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency

By Kathleen Hickey

Jul 06, 2009

The Defense Department last week appointed Regina E. Dugan, president and chief executive officer of RedXDefense, as the new director of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.

Dugan was a program manager at DARPA from 1996 to 2000, where, among other projects, she led the “Dog’s Nose Program,” which focused on developing an advanced, field-portable system for detecting the explosive content of land mines.

“Regina Dugan is precisely the dynamic leader DARPA needs to open new technology frontiers and transition revolutionary technologies to serve our nation’s interests,” Zachary J. Lemnios, director of Defense Research and Engineering, said in a release.

After leaving DARPA in May 2000, Dugan served in executive positions at several companies before cofounding RedXDefense in 2005. The company develops defenses against explosive threats.

During her time at DARPA, she received several awards, including Program Manager of the Year, the de Fleury Medal and the Office of the Secretary of Defense Award for Exceptional Service.

Dugan has participated in studies for the Defense Science Board, the Army Science Board, the National Research Council and Science Foundation, and currently sits on the Naval Research Advisory Committee and the Defense Threat Reduction Agency Science and Technology Panel.

She earned her doctorate in mechanical engineering from the California Institute of Technology, and her master's and bachelor's degrees from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. She is the co-author of “Engineering Thermodynamics.”

Dugan is the 19th director of DARPA, the central research and development office for DOD. The agency’s past directors: